Top 10 Birds you Might Find in your Garden

When deciding to feed birds there will be ten main breads which are most likely to frequent your garden. Each year the RSPB play host to the largest UK wildlife survey, called the Big Garden Birdwatch. Taken from the 2018 survey we have put together this list of the Top 10 most common garden birds.

House Sparrow

These small delightful birds are the most popular in our gardens, and are most likely to be seen in urban areas. However they are not just populating the UK; they have managed to spread their wings all over the world. When identifying House Sparrows you will notice prominent differences between the males and females. They both have brown stripped wings but;the Males have a grey breast and cap with a black bib like marking just under their beak. Whereas the female is a light brown colour. House sparrows are opportunistic birds. If there are any living around your garden be sure that they will drop in if food is left out for them. When feeding House Sparrows opt for a small tub feeder, as they like to eat small seeds and peanut.

Starling

These fabulous birdshave a deep black colour and are covered in whitespeckles. Court in the right light their feathers have a stunning iridescent green and purple sheen. These gregarious birds like nothing more than spending their time performing acrobatic aerial displays with their flock.Fascinatingly Starlings are amazing mimics. They like to copy sounds they hear around them, like other birds, machinery and even human voices. This can make them hard to identify when out of sight, but great fun to listen to.When it comes to feeding Starlings they really aren’t picky. They will be happy with whatever is left out; but they are especially keen onmealworms, suet cakes and peanuts.

Blue Tit

These extravagantly beautiful birds are one of our favourites to spot in the garden. They are small but with theirdelightfully coloured distinctive bodies it makes them easy to spot. Blue tit’s have a multitude of different coloured features. They have bright blue wings and hat, striking yellow breast, a small green patch behind the head and cute white cheeks with a black collar and eye mask.In the winter months they can be seen joining together with other Tits on the search for food. When looking to attract Tit families to your garden; why not put out some of their favourites like seeds, peanuts and fat balls. Then watch them flock to your garden.

Blackbird

As their name suggests these birds are a striking black with prominent yellow beaks and circles round the eyes, however this is just the male. The females look is completely different. She sports dark brown wings with a slightly lighter brown mottled breast. Their young also starts its life looking more like mum in a brown shade, then as it matures its gender becomes more apparent. Blackbirds are actually Migratory; here in the UK we get visitors from Scandinavia and the Baltics. These birds are the only on this list that like to eat fruit, particularly berries and apples. Another favourite food for Blackbirds is earthworms. They can often be seen on the grass listening out for a wiggling meal after it has rained. If you are after feeding our native Blackbird and its holidaying relatives; using a bird table is great. This will allow you to put out meal worms and fruits for them to enjoy.

Wood Pigeon

This is the most common type of Pigeon you will find in your garden. Like most Pigeons it has amix of ashy grey feathers. The way in which you are able to establish it being a Wood Pigeon, is by the white neck marking and a light pink hue on its chest. They can be found all over; but often tend to be more apparent in urban areas. Pigeons aren’t always everybody’s favourite bird to visit the garden. They are large, scare off the smaller birds and have big appetites. However if you are not one to want to leave any bird unfed then the types of feed you will want to put out for them are seeds, grain and fruit. You will want to place with on something with a large surface area for them to land on like a bird table. But do also place food down on the ground if you would like to keep them away from the smaller birds; as they will be happy just to pick from the ground.

Goldfinch

This bird has a beautifully stunning appearance; with its golden ginger body, jet black wings with bright yellow tips and most distinctively red face. The Goldfinch has to be one of the most attractive birds to grace our gardens. Ten years ago this gorgeous bird would not have made it to our list. But every year we are seeing an increase in the numbers of Goldfinch swooping into our garden. This could be down to the wider range of bird seed on the market. Goldfinches enjoy particular seeds such as Niger seed and sunflower hearts. This bird has a large extremely strong beak; so when choosing a feeder you will need to make sure it is durable. Opt for a strong metal mesh feeder to hold the larger sunflower hearts. And an easy to access tube feeder for the Niger seeds. This should help the life span of your feeder.

Great Tit

These birds look quite similar to their cousins, the blue tit. The Great Tit is not as bright in colour and has a black head continuing down its chest with white cheeks. It is the largest member of the Tit family. This can make it the ‘bully older brother’ to the bread. They can sometimes be seen tussling at the bird table. The Great Tit has a distinctly recognisable song which sounds slightly like asqueaky seesaw. When feeding these birds go forSun flower hearts, peanuts and fat balls as those are their favourites.

Robin

Its official we love the Robin. Yet again it has been crowned Britain’s National Bird. And quite rightly so; this charmingly sweet looking bird has a brown body and vibrant red breast. We are very used to seeing them on our Christmas cards, but they are also very common in our gardens too. Robins do look very cute and innocent, however they are extremely territorial. Using their very loud and prominent song to ward off intruders. They can be known to be quite confident and come close to see what’s going on or if you have any food for them. This makes them a great bird to entice into your garden. Due to their dominance you may find one Robin claims your garden as their own, how flattering. When feeding this beloved bird you should put out things like meal worms and fat balls, which are their favourites. These can be placed on a feeding platform or bird table. Or hang the fat balls directly from trees branches.

Long-tailed Tit

Another beautiful bird from the Tit family. The Long-tailed Tit is not as common as its cousins; this being only its second time making this list. This is a great sign that we are increasingly seeing these sweet little birds grace our gardens. This is a small white bodied bird with black feathers and pinky hues botted around its body. Its tail is where it gets its name. It is Thi

Chaffinch

The male Chaffinch has a stunning orangey pink breast with a smoky grey cap. Whereas the unassuming female has a light brown breast with dark brown and white stripped wings. They are no ones for coming to bird tables or feeders. These birds spend their time hunting under hedge rows, looking for seeds and berries. They are therefore happier hopping around beneath feeders collecting anything that has fallen to the ground. When putting up a bird feeder, scatter some excess seeds or berries on the ground underneath to also draw in the stunning Chaffinch.

Now why don’t you try going in to your garden or looking from a window to see how many birds you can see from this list. Perhaps you could even take part in the next RSPB Big Garden Bird watch. If you struggle to see any birds in your garden, don’t assume there aren’t any around you. They may just need a little encouragement to come to your garden. Why not pick a bird feeder, grab some food and get enticing those birds into your garden.

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